We are lucky enough to live in a state that features sunny weather most of the year. And particularly this year, even the winter months offer pleasant temps for a walk outside. For many of you who are new to exercise or who prefer a low-impact cardio workout, walking can be valuable way to lose weight and improve fitness.  However, I have a few rules for walking to make your workouts efficient and effective. 

Erica’s Rules for Walking

1. Set goals. It’s time to face the truth: you need to be exercising most days of the week. “What?” you ask, “Most days of the week?” Yes…you should be physically active about five days per week.

The sad truth is that most of us are primarily sedentary. We drive to work where we sit at desks for eight or more hours each day. We often eat our lunches at our desks and rarely get up until it is quitting time. At the end of the day we drive home and then spend the evening with family responsibilities and then time sitting in front of the TV, computer, tablet or other electronic device until we do it all over again.

Our bodies are meant to move. And with the majority of our population classified as overweight or obese, it is not a luxury but a necessity to move more. So start by setting goals for your walking program. For example, how many days a week will you walk? Which days? How long will each walk last and how far will you go? 

Practical Tip: Wear a pedometer to get a measurement of your steps. Or even better, if you have a smart phone you can download apps like Runkeeper, MapMyWalk, MapMyRun or Trails to keep track of your distance, speed and elevation change. Many apps even provide links to Facebook so you can post your walking workouts for accountability.

2. Walk like you mean it. When you set off on your walk take the first few minutes to do a mental body check. Where are you looking? Are you looking down at the ground? Tilt your head up and look ahead of you. It will lift your chest, help straighten your posture and set you upright instead of hunched over. What are your arms doing? They should be moving! Walking should be a full body exercise! Pump your arms to help propel you forward and engage your upper body.

If you walk on the treadmill the same questions apply. Where are you looking? You should be looking ahead. Craning your neck to watch a high TV can strain the back muscles. And looking down to read a book can do the same, while also taking your focus from the task at hand.

My biggest rule for treadmill walking? Do not hold on to the sides or handles! Unless you have balance limitations or other reasons to be worried about losing your footing, you should let your arms pump just like when you are walking outdoors. Why? First, walking should be a rotational movement through the upper body. As your arms swing, your torso should rotate to the right and left contributing to a smooth gait around the hips and spine. When you hold on to the treadmill your rotational movement is limited through the upper body. This rotation must happen somewhere else in order to propel you forward, usually translating to the lower back, which can cause discomfort and pain. Second, I often see people holding on to the treadmill so they can read a book while walking.

In my opinion, if you can read a book while exercising, not only is your mindfulness not on your exertion, your breathing and heart rate, but you probably are not working as hard as you should. So let that machine go and use your entire body and your mind to focus on the task at hand.

3. Challenge yourself. I suggest you measure your exertion level when taking your daily walk. I recommend a modified version of the Rate of Perceived Exertion Scale (RPE). Imagine a scale between 1 – 10, 1 being completely sedentary (like laying on the couch) and 10 being a sprint. Provided you are generally healthy with no limitations and a doctor’s approval to exercise, you should be at a minimum of 5-6 on the RPE scale when walking. If you can easily chat with your neighbor about the day’s gossip, then you are probably not working hard enough. Rather, you should feel it necessary to take a breath every few words and it should feel uncomfortable (but not impossible) to talk. 

Practical Tip: If you analyze your daily walk and decide you need to up the ante, try the following:

• Add hills or stairs. Walking up hills or stairs is an effective way to increase the difficulty of your low-impact workouts. Not only do they provide a strenuous cardio workout but they also engage your glute and hamstring muscles more than walking on flat surfaces, which can help tone your tush and legs.
• Walk on sand. Barefoot walks in the sand challenge the core and balance as well as the muscles of the foot and lower leg, which are often neglected as we move through our daily lives in shoes. Don’t live near the beach? No problem! Many communities offer beach volleyball courts and many parks feature sandy playgrounds.

4. Don't just walk the dog. Now, let’s address our four-legged friends. I love dogs and I encourage all dog owners to get outside and enjoy the beautiful OC surroundings with their pooches as part of a healthy and active lifestyle. However, I do not consider dog walking a workout. I myself have a dog, a two-year old bundle of energy who needs multiple walks each day. But I also am aware of my movement when I walk her. She stops frequently to sniff the grass, say “hello” to other dogs or greet people as they walk by. I consequently stop too. Unless we are doing our daily run up El Toro Road, my heart rate does not stay elevated for any significant amount of time, nor does it ever reach the RPE of 6-7, let alone 8-9. By all means, enjoy the ritual you share with your pooch. However, understand that it is not a replacement for a rigorous workout unless you structure it as such.

Putting Together a Walking Regimen

Now that you know my rules, what should your walking program look like? We already determined that you should be physically active most days of the week. Set a goal to walk for fitness four to five days each week. 

Next, divide your weekly walks into two categories: long, steady days and short, interval days. Your long and steady days should involve your flat trails or sidewalks and should last 45-60 minutes at an RPE of 5-7. Your interval days should be shorter, only 20-30 minutes, and should be more intense with an RPE of 7+.  Interval days can include your hills, stairs or sand. Try this interval workout you can do on a treadmill:

• Start with a flat warm-up at an RPE of 5-6 for 5 minutes.
• Increase the incline on the treadmill to 3% or more (pick an incline that puts your  RPE at 7 or 8 but is controlled) for 1 minute.
• Reduce the incline to 0% for 2 minutes.
• Repeat cycle for 20-30 minutes.
• Cool down and stretch.

As you get fitter you can increase the difficulty by making the incline higher, the speed faster or the “rest” cycle on 0% shorter.

Now get out there and get walking!